American Imperialism on Trial
Port Jefferson Middle School eighth-graders took their classroom lessons
to another level when they teamed up to create a mock trial about
American Imperialism. After learning about the political, economic and
cultural influences of the country, the students in Kayleen Everitt’s
and Dr. Tara Sladek-Maharg’s English and social studies classes,
respectively, represented the prosecution against Imperialism and spoke as witnesses
to the trial as representatives of Latin America. The English class
served as the jury and gallery. While the jury deliberated at the end
and decided the trial, the gallery’s role was to evaluate each
representing side’s use of the ethical strategies of ethos, pathos and
logos.